Advice on Advertising?

theorosendorf
theorosendorf Posts: 5
in Type Business
I’m starting a daily email newsletter on type. It’s growing steadily and I’m humbled by the interest so far. We plan to launch Winter 2025.
I have some questions (and slight ambivalence) about running ads. Above all else we want to honor reader sensibilities, but this thing also needs to operate as a business. So we plan to run some non-obtrusive ads under/after the content.
Here are my questions but would love any input on the topic.
  • Have you seen good examples of newsletters (or print zines) that include tasteful, relevant, useful ads that don’t alienate readers?
  • As a reader, what kind of ad placement or formats are you okay with?
  • Of course I have lots of ideas, but what kind of advertisers would you like to see in a newsletter about typography?
  • Also, if you liked the content but not the ads, would you pay $3/mo to not have ads?
Appreciate any insight. Especially from anyone who’s done something similar in this space.
🙏

Comments

  • Carl Crossgrove
    Carl Crossgrove Posts: 10
    2 thoughts: DAILY??? And, subscriptions, via existing platforms like Substack or Mastodon might provide a lot of infrastructure you could use, since the format is a match. That removes all the pressure to use advertising, although people who publish on those platforms can weigh in about the business model. 
  • theorosendorf
    theorosendorf Posts: 5
    Thanks Carl! Yeah, daily. 😄 You are, surprisingly the first to give such a reaction. I have thought about giving subscribers a way to customize the frequency. But I’m curious, do you think daily is too much content or are you saying it sounds difficult to pull off?

    Here’s the site for anyone that’s interested. I should mention, the content format has evolved from what it shows. It will be more narrative and better tuned for the medium of email: https://quadrat.today
  • Nick Shinn
    Nick Shinn Posts: 2,277
    Constant, frequent marketing, in the guise of “content creation,” is extremely exhausting. 
  • theorosendorf
    theorosendorf Posts: 5
    I couldn’t agree more, @Nick Shinn.
  • Joshua Langman
    Joshua Langman Posts: 129
    I also think daily is too much. I'd consider subscribing to something put out every week or two. Daily e-mails are a turn-off.
  • Thomas Phinney
    Thomas Phinney Posts: 3,010
    • As a reader, what kind of ad placement or formats are you okay with?
    Gosh, no idea.
    • Of course I have lots of ideas, but what kind of advertisers would you like to see in a newsletter about typography?
    For the most part, I would be happy to see anyone who will pay you money for the space.
    • Also, if you liked the content but not the ads, would you pay $3/mo to not have ads?
    I would say, take ads, and optionally (if it is not too much trouble) let people pay a premium for the ad-free version.
  • dascaluflorin
    dascaluflorin Posts: 2
    Hi, there.

    It might be worth looking into what daily sends could do to your email list/deliverability.
    From what I heard from colleagues in charge of strategy/coordination (in an email marketing agency), daily sends are not recommended as it can lead to higher unsubscribe rates and higher changes for the emails to land in the Spam folder. I think you might get away with using different subdomains for different types of newsletters you'd send - but don't take it as advice, as my experience is with the design, not the strategy/coordination side of things. 

    Giving the subscriber a customization option for the frequency might work, especially if they can do so when they sign up for the newsletters.

    "Also, if you liked the content but not the ads, would you pay $3/mo to not have ads?" - if I didn't like the ads, $3 sounds fair. But for me, it would really depend on a combination of:
    • the type of ads (do I find them useful? - i.e. discounts for X app or Y event),
    • are they unobtrusive and don't disrupt the flow (i.e. somewhere at the end of the newsletter, between the sections, or written in a way where I don't realize it's an ad until I'm halfway through it?),
    • frequency of emails (a few every week? Yes. One every month? Probably no),
    • benefits (once in a while, do I get a discount for something, or get to hear first about an event?),
    • etc.

    Cheers.

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